The first round of the 2023 Ontario Hockey League post-season provided just about everything a hockey fan could ask for and then some.
There were three sweeps, three Game 6s and a Game 7.
There was just over an hour of overtime packed into eight games that needed it and there was a first between the Kitchener Rangers and the Windsor Spitfires.
Never before had an eighth seed upset a number one seed in four-straight games. The Rangers completed that feat on Apr. 6.
Round one ended four days later when the 2024 Memorial Cup hosts knocked off their I-75 rivals as the Saginaw Spirit took care of the Flint Firebirds in a seventh game. The game winning goal was scored with under four minutes to play.
Now eight teams remain in the quest to represent the OHL at the 2023 Memorial Cup in Kamloops, B.C., from May 26 to June 4.
Here are the matchups:
London vs Kitchener
The Knights and the Rangers each finished a first-round sweep on the same night at about the same time. It took roughly 20 minutes from the end of their games for the word “rematch” to be used.
These two clubs met in the 2022 post-season and the series went seven games and then needed overtime. Mike Petizian’s winner at the 11:35 mark of OT ended things in Kitchener’s favour but Pavel Cajan’s eight stops in overtime and 51 overall in Game 7 paved the way as #7 Kitchener upset #2 London.
Both Petizian and Cajan are gone but 21 players who played in that game are back for The Rematch.
Isaiah George and Logan Mailloux were also on the Knights roster but were injured last year. George is a question mark for the start of the series this season because of an upper body injury.
The Rangers will be without captain Francesco Pinelli for Games 1 and 2 due to suspension.
In goal the Knights Brett Brochu is number one in goals against average among goalies who have played at least three playoff games. Marco Costantni of the Rangers is number two.
Costantini is number one in save percentage. Brochu is number two.
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Both clubs are rolling.
London took the season series winning five out of six games.
Expect the best-of-7 to be much, much closer.
Sarnia vs Saginaw
No team benefitted from the Western Conference round one outcomes more than the Sarnia Sting. Instead of facing a team that had added players to take a run in 2023 they get to meet a club that traded veterans away to gear up for what eventually became a successful 2024 Memorial Cup bid.
The Sting were the best team in the OHL from the trade deadline through to the end of the season. They went 17 straight games from Feb. 20 to March 25 without losing in regulation. Sarnia was also tested just enough by the Guelph Storm in the opening round to give their some added edginess moving forward.
Sarnia’s top five scorers in the regular season are their top five scorers so far in the post-season.
Saginaw isn’t exactly about to sign over the series and wait for next year. The Spirit are a team that is definitely a year ahead of schedule right now but despite dealing away Pavel Mintyukov, Josh Bloom and Brayden Hislop they can give you fits.
They have just-turned-16-year-old phenom Michael Misa and a rookie defenceman in Zayne Parekh who set a record with 21-goals in the regular season and they add those players in with Hunter Haight, Matyas Sapovaliv, Mitchell Smith and other veterans.
The Spirit are well-coached and have nothing to lose. Every minute of experience now only feeds into next year.
Ottawa vs Peterborough
The Ottawa 67’s were the best team in the OHL’s regular season. The Oshawa Generals managed to spoil a 67’s statistic in round one but that’s about all they were able to do against Ottawa.
The 67’s entered the playoffs with a record of 41-0-0-0 when they were leading a game after 40 minutes. The Generals pulled off a third period three-goal comeback against Ottawa in Game 3 and then won in overtime. The 67’s won the series in five games on the backs of Luca Pinelli’s and Logan Morrison’s offence. Pinelli had 12 points in the five games and Morrison had ten.
Ottawa is a very disciplined and incredibly balanced team with the ability to play a game any way their opponent would like.
The Petes swept away the Sudbury Wolves in four games. Peterborough held a team that averaged four goals per game in the regular season to just two goals per game in their opening round series.
The Petes have the experience of former OHL Champions Avery Hayes and Gavin White and the game breaking talent of Brennan Othmann along with top end goaltending from Michael Simpson. All of it will need to be at its best to upset Ottawa.
The 67s won five of the seven games between the clubs this year including the final four meetings between the teams.
North Bay vs Barrie
The North Bay Battalion appear built for the playoffs. They are big. They are physical. They have excellent goaltending. And they play as a unit. Getting to their net is a lot like getting to the last Timbit in the box in a wolf den.
The Mississauga Steelheads spent round one against the Battalion shooting pucks from everywhere just hoping the capitalize on chaos. It got a young Mississauga team two victories ealry on but then North Bay adjusted and outscored the Steelheads 11-4 in the final two games.
Matvey Petrov led the way offensively for North Bay. He scored 27 goals in the regular season but did not score a single goal against Mississauga but his ten assists are second only to Brandt Clarke of the Barrie Colts.
Speaking of Clarke. He had himself a first round for Barrie.
The 19-year old defenceman who started the season with the Los Angeles Kings had an astounding 17 points in five games. Clarke served a one-game suspension for a kneeing penalty and still leads the field by seven points.
He can break up a play at one end and finish a rush at the other seemingly on the same shift.
But he isn’t the only weapon the Colts have to throw at North Bay.
Ethan Cardwell had six goals in five games in Barrie’s first round series victory over Hamilton.
And don’t forget the the Colts are the only team that gets big-time offence from their goalie. Anson Thornton scored into an empty net in the final game to send the Bulldogs to Brantford.
North Bay won five of the six games between the teams in the regular season so Barrie will need Clarke and friends to stay hot to have a shot.
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